In a university with the scope of Columbia, economics courses are taught within several different administrative units. While the economics department that grew within the graduate Faculty of Political Science is of primary importance, we probably want to keep an eye on developments in the undergraduate programs of Columbia College and Barnard College and courses taught in the Business School. The following table caught my eye in a folder labelled “Columbia College” in an archival box of the economics department. I have inserted a column with the course names found in the annual university catalogue. I find it interesting that “comparative economic systems” was already a course designation no later than 1921-22 (p. 114 of the departmental listings in the 1921-22 catalogue, taught by assistant professor W. E. Weld). Google N-Gram first registers the use of “comparative economic systems” in 1955.
From the 1921-22 catalogue (p. 38): William E. Weld, Assistant Professor of Economics, A.B., Wooster, 1903; A.M., 1909; Ph.D., Columbia, 1920. He went on to become professor and Dean at Rochester University (1929-1937) and President of Wells College (1936-48). Here is his obituary in the New York Times.
Historical enrollment figures by class as well as course-staffing information are easily available (on-line!) for Harvard in the Annual Reports of the President. For other universities I just continue to look for relevant administrative memos (like that posted here) in departmental and university records.
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If you find this posting interesting, here is the complete list of “artifacts” from the history of economics I have assembled. You can subscribe to Economics in the Rear-View Mirror below. There is also an opportunity for comment following each posting….
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COURSES AND ELECTIONS
[by Columbia College Students]
I A. Elections by Courses
|
Course number or letter |
[course name] | Or, is this course one in business? | 1928-29* | 27-28 | 26-27 | 25-26 | 24-25 | 23-24 |
Increased |
| Economics | |||||||||
|
1 |
Principles of Economics—Principles and practical problems. 6 points. | 301 | 271 | 259 | 274 | 281 | 322 | ||
|
1r |
– | 7 | – | – | – |
– |
|||
| 2 | – | 230 | 241 | 244 | 264 |
286 |
|||
|
3 |
Economic institutions in operation. 2 points. | 12 | 20 | – | – | – | – | ||
| 6 | Principles of economics. Combination of Economics 1-2. 5 points. | – | 56 | 60 | 52 | 29 |
32 |
||
|
7 |
Phases of American economic life. 2 points. | – | 14 | 17 | 9 | 41 | 20 | ||
|
8 |
Proposals for economic reorganization. 2 points. | – | 8 | 23 | 15 | 33 |
8 |
||
|
9 |
Comparative economic systems, or International comparison and economic welfare. 6 points. | 19 | – | 35 | 34 | 10 |
20 |
||
| 10 | – | – | 33 | 29 | 9 |
13 |
|||
|
11 |
Early, Legal economics. Then, The development and content of present-day economic theory. 4 points | 8 | 15 | – | – | 15 | 23 | ||
| 12 | – | 11 | – | – | 9 |
8 |
|||
|
14 |
Financial organization. 2 points. | Yes | – | – | 25 | 6 | – |
– |
|
|
17 |
Elements of business administration | “ | 152 | 107 | 82 | 81 | 94 | 138 | |
| 18 | “ | – | 90 | 67 | 53 | 68 |
105 |
||
|
20 |
Earlier, Elements of Business Administration. Later, Financial and business organization. 4 points. | “ | – | 41 | 16 | 11 | 13 | 26 | |
| 33 | Methods in social sciences. 2 points. | – | – | – | 4 | 15 |
– |
||
|
101 |
Public finance. 6 points. | Yes | 15 | 13 | 11 | 17 | 21 | 38 | |
| 102 | “ | – | 11 | 6 | 12 | 12 |
25 |
||
|
103 |
Principles of money and banking. 3 points. | “ | 75 | 38 | 26 | 28 | 25 |
54 |
|
|
104 |
The organization of the banking system. 3 points. | “ | – | 31 | 23 | 25 | 19 |
34 |
|
|
105 |
Labor problems. 3 points. | 20 | 7 | 14 | 6 | 10 | 32 | ||
| 106 | Corporation and trust problems. 3 points. | – | 13 | 9 | 5 | 10 |
31 |
||
|
107 |
Fiscal and industrial history of the United States. 3 points. | 3 | – | 3 | – | – | – | ||
| 108 | Railroad problems; economic, social and legal. 3 points. | – | – | 4 | – | 7 |
– |
||
|
131 |
Earlier, Legal economics. Later, Legal factors in economics. 4 points. | 5 | 8 | 8 | 6 | – | – | ||
| 132 | – | 6 | 3 | 2 | – |
– |
|||
| Total Elections of Economics Courses by Columbia College Students | 621* | 1010 | 972 | 923 | 1002 | 1254 | |||
*For Winter Session Only
Source: Columbia University Libraries and Archives. Columbiana. Department of Economics Collection. Box 6, Folder “Columbia College”.
Image Source: Art and Picture Collection, The New York Public Library. (1913). Library Columbia University, New York City. Retrieved from http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e2-8bad-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99